Shrinkable thermoplastic films have found many useful applications in packaging of meats, cheeses, poultry and numerous other food and non-food products. There is always the search for improvement in these films to make them have better impact resistance, improved optics and improved shrinkability. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,856 to Ferguson et al., the multilayer thermoplastic heat shrinkable film was described having improved shrink, toughness and barrier properties. The film included at least one layer of a very low density polyethylene and a gas barrier layer of vinylidene chloride copolymer or ethylene vinyl alcohol. The film was found to be particularly useful for making bags for packaging large cuts of fresh red meat.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,059,481, 4,976,898 and 4,863,769, all to Lustig et al., disclose heat shrinkable film suitable for packaging food articles such as frozen poultry, primal meat cuts and processed meat products wherein the film may be a biaxially stretched monolayer film of a very low density polyethylene copolymer or a multilayer film containing very low density polyethylene.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,457,960 to Newsome discloses the use of linear low density polyethylene in multiple layer molecularly oriented films.
Each of the foregoing patents describe the incorporation into heat shrinkable films of conventional ethylene/alpha-olefins produced by Ziegler-Natta catalyst systems. Ziegler-Natta catalytic methods are commonly used throughout the polymer industry and have a long history tracing back to about 1957.
These systems are often referred to as heterogeneous since they are composed of many types of catalytic species each at different metal oxidation states and different coordination environments with ligands. Examples of Ziegler-Natta heterogeneous systems include metal halides activated by an organometallic co-catalyst, such as titanium or magnesium chlorides complexed to trialkyl aluminum and may be found in patents such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,302,565 and 4,302,566. Because these systems contain more than one catalytic species, they possess polymerization sites with different activities and varying abilities to incorporate comonomer into a polymer chain.
The result of such multi-site chemistry is a product with poor control of the polymer chain architecture both within the sequence of a single chain, as well as when compared to a neighboring chain. In addition, differences in catalyst efficiency produce high molecular weight polymer at some sites and low molecular weight at others. Therefore, copolymers produced using these systems lead to polymer products which are mixtures of chains some high in comonomer and others with almost none. For example, conventional Ziegler-Natta multi-site catalysts may yield a linear ethylene/alpha-olefin copolymer (HDPE, LLDPE, VLDPE, ULDPE) having a mean comonomer percentage of 10, but with a range of 0% to 40% comonomer in individual chains. This, together with the diversity of chain lengths results in a truly heterogeneous mixture also having a broad molecular weight distribution (MWD).
Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) has enjoyed great success as a raw material choice for packaging films. The term LLDPE is generally understood to describe copolymers of ethylene and one or more other alpha olefin monomers which are polymerized at low pressure using a Ziegler-Natta catalyst to achieve a density range of about 0.915 to about 0.940. Although no clear standard exists, LLDPE polymers are often marketed in subgroups of densities such as linear medium density (LMDPE), linear low density polyethylene, linear very low density (VLDPE), or linear ultra low density polyethylene (ULDPE). These classifications are for marketing use and will vary by supplier.
These materials are different from high pressure low density polyethylene (LDPE) which is generally understood in the trade as a highly branched homopolymer having a single low melting point. For example, a 0.92 density LDPE would typically have a melting point at about 112.degree. C. while a corresponding density LLDPE would have melting points at 107.degree., 120.degree., and 125.degree. C. The multiple melting points are commonly observed with LLDPE and are a consequence of the above mentioned heterogeneous incorporation of comonomer.
Recently a new type of ethylene copolymer has been introduced which is the result of a new catalyst technology. Examples of introductory journal articles include "Exxon Cites `Breakthrough` in Olefins Polymerization," Modern Plastics, July 1991, p.61; "Polyolefins Gain Higher Performance from New Catalyst Technologies," Modern Plastics, Oct. 1991, p.46; "PW Technology Watch," Plastics World, Nov. 1991, p. 29; and ", " Plastics Technology, Nov. 1991, p. 15.
Such new resins are produced using metallocene catalyst systems, the uniqueness of which resides in the steric and electronic equivalence of each catalyst position. Metallocene catalysts are characterized as having a single, stable chemical type rather than a volatile mixture of states as discussed for conventional Ziegler-Natta. This results in a system composed of catalyst positions which have a singular activity and selectivity. For this reason, metallocene catalyst systems are often referred to as "single site" owing to the homogeneous nature of them, and polymers and copolymers produced from them are often referred to as single site resins by their suppliers.
Generally speaking, metallocene catalysts are organometallic compounds containing one or more cyclopentadienyl ligands attached to metals such as hafnium, titanium, vanadium, or zirconium. A co-catalyst, such as but not limited to, oligomeric methyl alumoxane is often used to promote the catalytic activity. By varying the metal component and the cyclopentadienyl ligand a diversity of polymer products may be tailored having molecular weights ranging from about 200 to greater than 1,000,000 and molecular weight distributions from 1.5 to about 15. The choice of co-catalyst influences the efficiency and thus the production rate, yield, and cost. Examples of metallocene catalysts are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,701,432, 4,306,041, 5,088,228, 4,935,397, 5,084,534, 3,161,629, 5,055,438, 5,057,475, and in JP 63/175004 and JP 1,101,315.
As a consequence of the single site system afforded by metallocenes, ethylene/alpha-olefin copolymer resins can be produced with each polymer chain having virtually the same architecture. Therefore, the copolymer chains produced from single site systems are uniform not only in chain length, but also in average comonomer content, and even regularity of comonomer spacing, or incorporation along the chain.
In contrast to the above mentioned Ziegler-Natta polymers, these single site metallocene polymers are characterized as having a narrow MWD and narrow compositional distribution (CD). While conventional polymers have MWD's of about 3.5 to 8.0, metallocenes range in MWD from about 1.5 to about 2.5 and most typically about 2.0. MWD refers to the breadth of the distribution of molecular weights of the polymer chains, and is a value which is obtained by dividing the number-average molecular weight into the weight-average molecular weight. The low CD, or regularity of side branches chains along a single chain and its parity in the distribution and length of all other chains, greatly reduces the low MW and high MW "tails". These features reduce the extractables which arise from poor LMW control as well as improve the optics by removing the linear, ethylene-rich portions which are present in conventional heterogeneous resins.
Thus, conventional Ziegler-Natta systems produce heterogeneous resins which reflect the differential character of their multiple catalyst sites while metallocene systems yield homogeneous resins which, in turn, reflect the character of their single catalytic site.
Another distinguishing property of single site catalyzed ethylene copolymers is manifested in their melting point range. The narrow CD of metallocenes produces a narrow melting point range as well as a lower Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC) peak melting point peak. Unlike conventional resins which retain a high melting point over a wide density range, metallocene resin melting point is directly related to density. For example, an ethylene/butene copolymer having a density of 0.905 g/cc produced using a metallocene catalyst has a peak melting point of about 100.degree. C., while a slightly lower density ethylene/butene copolymer which was made using a conventional Ziegler catalyst reflects its heterogeneous nature with a melting point at about 120.degree. C. DSC shows that the Ziegler resin is associated with a much wider melting point range and actually melts higher despite its lower density.
It should be noted that at least some previously available ethylene based linear polymers approximated the physical and compositional properties achieved by the present metallocene catalyzed polyolefins. For example, in "Sequence and Branching Distribution of Ethylene/1-Butene Copolymers Prepared with a Soluble Vanadium Based Ziegler-Natta Catalyst," Macromolecules, 1992, 25, 2820-2827, it was confirmed that a soluble vanadium based Ziegler-Natta catalytic system VOCl.sub.3 /Al.sub.2 (C.sub.2 H.sub.5).sub.3 Cl.sub.3, acts essentially as a single site catalyst although VOCl.sub.3 is not a metallocene. Homogeneous copolymers produced by such a catalyst system have been commercially available for several years. An example of such are the resins sold under the tradename Tafmer.TM. by Mitsui.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,501,634 to Yoshimura et al is directed to an oriented, multilayered film which includes a Tafmer as a blend component in at least one layer.
Japanese Kokoku 37907/83 to Gunze Limited was directed to a heat-sealable biaxially oriented composite film wherein the heat seal layer contains Tafmer in a blend.
The foregoing patents disclose homogeneous ethylene alpha-olefins having densities below 0.90 g/cc. Heretofore, such resins have been generally unavailable in densities at and above 0.90 g/cc because of limitations in the VOCl.sub.3 process. Yet, U.S. Pat. No. 1,209,825 to DuPont discloses homogeneous copolymers having densities up to about 0.920 made with single site Zigler catalysts. When extruded into a film the resins exhibit improved physical and optical properties as compared to films of heterogeneous copolymers. However, such homogeneous copolymers of densities above 0.90 g/cc have been commercially unavailable. It is believed that process limitations precluded the manufacture of such resins in any but bench-top quantities. Metallocene catalysts, however, can provide such homogeneous copolymers in a wide range of densities in commercial quantities. Thus, the benefits of homogeneity can now be incorporated into copolymers having densities analogous to those of conventional VLDPEs and LLDPEs.
However, while providing improved physical properties such as optics, low extractables and improved impact, the narrow compositional distribution of some typical metallocene catalyzed resins can cause some processing difficulties. It has been found that such processing problems are avoided if some limited long chain branching is introduced. That is, a typical metallocene catalyzed ethylene alpha-olefin may be thought of as a collection of linear chains, each of substantially identical length, each having approximately the same number of short chain (comonomer) branches distributed at regular intervals along that length. Splicing an abbreviated linear chain with the same regular comonomer distribution onto each of the linear chains, or at least some of the chains in the collection, yields an ethylene alpha-olefin with essentially all of the physical properties of the original copolymer, but with an improved "body" or melt strength for improved processability including improved extrudability, orientation speeds and susceptibility to irradiation.
One way of quantifying the improved processability of the new homogeneous branched ethylene -olefin copolymers is by the melt flow ratio I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 as described in ASTM D-1238. In WO 93/08221 Dow discloses such copolymers and notes that the I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 ratio for such is indicative of the degree of long chain branching. For linear polyolefins the I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 ratio increases as molecular weight distribution increases. Molecular weight distribution may be defined as the ratio of weight average molecular weight (Mw) to number average molecular weight (Mn) or Mw/Mn. Conventional heterogeneous linear ethylene alpha-olefins typically have a high I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 and a correspondingly high molecular weight distribution. Linear homogeneous ethylene .alpha.-olefins have a low molecular weight distribution and a correspondingly low I.sub.10 /I.sub.2. But homogeneous ethylene .alpha.-olefins with long chain branching such as those supplied by Dow under the Insite trade name have low molecular weight distributions but high I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 ratios. In part, Dow defines these copolymers as having I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 .gtoreq.5.63 and Mw/Mn.ltoreq.(I.sub.10 /I.sub.2)-4.63. This high I.sub.10 /I.sub.2 is an indication of ease of processability discussed above, while the homogeneity, of which Mw/Mn is one measure, provides for improved physical properties also discussed above. A more detailed description of the chemistry and particularly the rheology of these branched homogeneous copolymers is given in WO 93/08221 which is incorporated hereinby reference.
Dow in EP 416,815 disclosed the preparation of ethylene/-olefin copolymers using monocyctopentadienylsilane complexed to a transition metal. Hereagain, homogeneous ethylene copolymers which may be prepared using this catalyst are said to have better optical properties than typical ethylene polymers and be well suited for film or injection molding.
The incorporation of the Dow long chain branched homogeneous ethylene alpha-olefin copolymers into heat shrinkable materials is disclosed generally in copending application U.S. Ser. No. 983,017 which is incorporated herein by reference.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a film structure having improved physical properties such as improved optics and impact strength and low extractables.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a film which is readily extruded and processed.